


Under The Sea

by shesbreathless



Series: schmico codas [7]
Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Sleepy Cuddles, fish?, nico being a great boyfriend, post 15x17
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-19 06:51:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18132374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shesbreathless/pseuds/shesbreathless
Summary: His clothes smell of clean cotton and a hint of cologne, a scent he’s come to associate with Nico. There’s definitely no trace of nasty fish anywhere.I continue the end of episode 15x17.





	Under The Sea

Levi has been running around the hospital for what feels like an eternity. His legs are barely holding him up at this point, and he can’t keep his eyes open. He has to, because he’s still at work and he has to see what he’s doing, but he really doesn’t want to.

The thing is, it’s just past one in the morning, but he’s been awake for almost 48 hours by now, and he’s tired past comprehension. Plus, the smell of fish never really left his nostrils, no matter how long he spent scrubbing himself raw in the shower earlier.

He can’t wait for his head to hit a pillow, or any soft surface for that matter. He’s already savouring the quiet of the on-call room, with the hopefully clean and cool sheets to make it even better, when he’s forcefully brought back to reality by someone clearing their throat next to him.

“What?” he startles. “I’m busy.”

He fumbles with the chart in his hands, pretending to have been reading it all along. The person chuckles, and Levi turns his head to the side to come face to face with Nico. A happy feeling blooms in his stomach when he recognizes him, and a small smile spreads on his lips.

“Are you so busy staring at the wall that you forgot about dinner?” Nico asks, voice amused.

Levi stares at him for maybe a second too long, then focuses on the clock on the wall behind Nico, and registers that he did indeed forget that they had made plans to have dinner together. The fried fish he’s had on the terrace suddenly doesn’t taste as good as it did.

He actually had really been looking forward to their little date, a few minutes just for them in the middle of their very busy and hectic work days, but it looks like it’s not going to happen today.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise-“ he starts apologising, but Nico lays his hand on his and interrupts him.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Nico shakes his head. “It’s okay, you were working.”

Levi looks at the unfinished chart still open on the counter in front of him, almost having forgotten that it was there. His brain feels like it’s moving in slow motion. He’s so tired.

“Yeah,” he manages to say, and he hopes it’s enough.

It’s obviously not, because Nico looks like he’s waiting for him to say something else. He tries to think of what it should be, but he can’t come up with anything. Finally, it comes to him.

“Let’s take a walk,” Levi says, looking up at Nico hopefully.

Nico visibly tries to hold back his laughter, but he ultimately fails. He reaches out with one hand and swipes it over Levi’s forehead, pushing back the hair flopping freely over it. The touch feels like heaven on Levi’s tired skin, so he leans into it.

“You’re literally falling asleep standing up,” Nico considers, and Levi shakes his head.

“No, I’m good,” Levi insists. “I just have to finish this, then we can go.”

He makes an attempt at picking his pen back up, but Nico stops him. He gathers the chart and all the things Levi had spread on the counter, tilting his head in the direction of the hallway and motioning for Levi to follow him.

Levi tries to get his stuff back, but his hands are too slow, and by the time he swipes the counter, Nico is already holding all of it. He trails his eyes up Nico’s body until he reaches his face, features softened by mirth and maybe fondness, Levi can’t tell.

“You need to sleep,” Nico says.

“But work,” Levi half-heartedly reaches for the chart in Nico’s hands.

“I can fill this,” Nico grabs one of Levi’s flailing hands and tugs him forward. “C’mon.”

Levi would keep arguing, but he can’t find it in him, so he follows Nico without complaining any further. He stumbles a bit on his own feet, but manages to stay upright long enough to get to the on-call room.

The hallways are thankfully mostly empty at this hour, so they don’t meet anybody along the way. Nico doesn’t let go of Levi’s hand, and before he knows it they’re closing the door behind themselves. The bed is literally calling Levi’s name.

Okay, maybe not literally. Levi is afraid that if he stays awake for one more second he’s going to start hallucinating. Maybe he already is. He definitely needs to sleep right now.

Nico walks past him and plops down on the bed, looking at Levi expectantly and patting the empty space next to him. Levi uses the last of his energy to kneel on the edge of the mattress and then crawls forward between Nico’s legs.

He wraps his arms around Nico’s waist and lies down on top of him, his head propped on Nico’s lower belly. His clothes smell of clean cotton and a hint of cologne, a scent he’s come to associate with Nico. There’s definitely no trace of nasty fish anywhere.

Levi hears papers rustling somewhere next to his head, figuring that Nico has opened the chart to start filling it for him. He would tell him how grateful he is right now, but he doesn’t think he’d be able to make up a full sentence.

“Ugh,” is all that comes out of his mouth when he tries.

Nico laughs quietly, and Levi feels his fingers sliding in his hair, scratching gently at his scalp. Levi moans at that, but it only makes Nico laugh more.

“Sleep,” he tells Levi, patting his head and taking his hand out of his hair.

Levi hums and turns his head to leave a kiss on Nico’s belly, the muscles firm but comfortable at the same time. He’ll think of something else to fully say thank you later, when his head doesn’t feel like it’s underwater and he can keep his eyes open for more than two seconds.

He lays his head back down, and the room falls into complete silence after that. Levi lets himself be lulled by the rhythmic up and down movement of Nico’s chest every time he breathes, the occasional scratching of the pen on the paper and the rustling of his clothes when he shifts subtly.

All of Levi’s muscles relax, the tension of holding himself up for so many hours in a row finally releasing. He knows he’ll have to get back to doing just that very shortly, but right now, with Nico firmly rubbing one hand down his spine and then back up to scratch the back of his neck, it’s okay.

He sighs deeply and wiggles to hug Nico’s waist even tighter, letting the lack of sleep catch up to him and finally fully surrendering to it. The last thing he hears before falling asleep is Nico softly humming a song to himself, the small smile never leaving Levi’s lips.

**Author's Note:**

> This has been a difficult week for me, so some serious fluff was definitely needed! I hope everyone is doing great, and that you enjoy this fic. If you did, and if you want to chat about anything, I'm always available on [Tumblr](https://shesbreathless.tumblr.com/)!
> 
> Also, the idea absolutely comes from [this](https://data.whicdn.com/images/211067272/large.jpg) scene, because it's my favourite thing ever. <3


End file.
